First off, a Happy Birthday to my dear old Mum, who hit 72 on the Monday just gone. Tricia, Robbie, Ellie and myself went across to Bracknell to see her last Sunday, and she was looking well.

Happy Birthday for this coming Thursday when Nikki hits 23. I can’t say I feel like the father of a 23 year old, but it is a fact. We won’t be seeing Nikki on her birthday this year as she is in Igls in Austria with the Bobsleigh squad. Of course in my last blog, we had pictures of Nikki with her lovely friend Serita… and shortly after Serita was involved in a nasty bobsleigh accident. Fortunately she is recovering, but it shook us all up.

Nikki has spent the last week learning to drive a bobsleigh, and is now certified by the ‘Fédération Internationale de Bobsleigh et de Tobogganing’ to drive in competition, but it may be a while before she is given a chance in competition. Today she has been joined by two colleagues and they will competing on Thursday in the first European Cup race. Vicky was the GB3 driver, she is now the GB2 driver. Obviously we hope all goes well for Nikki this week. We are able to see Nikki with online internet phone calls on Skype.

Rob was home last weekend and it was good to see him. He was relaxing after completing a uni project – linking an art theme with Karl Marx’s theory of alienation. Of course we had the Prussian flag flying whilst he was at home. Tricia took him back on Monday, and so the Union Jack went back up – in time for Remembrance day.

We had a parents evening for Ellie on Wednesday, the school are very pleased with how she has started. The rehearsals for the school production of ‘we will rock you’ start ramping up this week, so she will be busy.

We have had a quiet weekend at home, which has been very welcome.  I did a few hours out on the bike yesterday, then gave the back lawn a final cut for the year (I hope). Tricia spent a productive afternoon in the garden. Today I went up to the local church for the remembrance day service, whilst Tricia and Ellie went across to Winslow and marched with the Guides in the remembrance day service, Ellie carrying the flag. We had a nice roast beef lunch with apple and pear crumble…. then a flop in the chair for me. Action woman (Tricia) went out to the garden for the afternoon. Mind you, it was lovely out. Tricia said she had never been so warm on a remembrance day parade…

For tea Ellie made some very passable welsh cakes. I have now got myself ready for work, and Tricia and I are watching ‘I’m a celebrity get me out of here’… I don’t know why, I get annoyed with the contestants complaining about spiders etc… what did they think they were going to get?

A busy week ahead…. nothing new there then.